Advance bus ticket sale for Eid starts

Sale of advance bus tickets by private operators ahead of the Eid-ul-Fitr festival kicked off on Friday - especially for passengers of northern, north-western and south-western regions.

Presence of the passengers was low in the morning, but most of the tickets for April 28 (last office day before the Eid) were sold out within afternoon on the day through counters and online, said operators and ticket seekers.

"Demand for tickets of April 28 and 30 is high. The Eid might be observed on May 02 or May 03, but April 28 (Thursday) will be the last working day for most of the service holders. Only a few offices and factories might remain open until April 30 (Saturday)," said Ruman Islam, a manager of SR Paribahan at Kalyanpur.

Most of the tickets for April 28 and April 29 have been sold out through counters and online, while some tickets for April 30 are still in their hands.

People will get enough leave - from seven to nine days - during this Eid-ul-Fitr. So the bus operators could avoid the as-usual rush during the festival, he added.

Different bus operators with counters in Gabtoli, Kalyanpur, Shyamoli, Asadgate and College Gate areas in the city started selling tickets in advance for the dates from April 25 to May 1.

Ruman Islam said tickets for May 2 will also be sold from the counters, if the Eid is observed on May 3.

Romesh Chandra Ghosh, chairman of Bangladesh Bus Truck Owners Association (BBTOA), said after two years, the bus operators are expecting to ply vehicles normally during this holy festival.

The operators will charge the government-fixed prices for tickets. If any operator is found guilty of violating the BRTA-set fares, strict actions will be taken against the company, he added.

According to BBTOA, some 4.0-4.5 million people are expected to leave the capital by bus ahead of the Eid-ul-Fitr festival.

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